Your company is growing. You've hired developer advocates. Now marketing wants to hire a developer marketer. Aren't they the same thing?
No. Developer Relations (DevRel) and Developer Marketing have different goals, different tactics, and different success metrics. But they need to work together. Here's how to structure both for success.
The Core Difference
Developer Relations (DevRel):
Primary goal: Developer community health and product adoption through education and community building.
Measured by: Community engagement, developer satisfaction, product usage depth.
Mindset: Developer-first. "How do we help developers succeed?"
Developer Marketing:
Primary goal: Demand generation and pipeline contribution through developer-focused campaigns.
Measured by: Signups, pipeline, revenue influence.
Mindset: Business-first with developer empathy. "How do we drive adoption at scale?"
The tension:
DevRel: "We shouldn't push developers. Let them discover organically."
Marketing: "We need leads. Can DevRel do demand gen?"
This tension is healthy if managed well, toxic if not.
What Developer Relations Owns
1. Community building and management
Activities:
- Running Discord/Slack communities
- Organizing meetups and user groups
- Managing community programs (champions, ambassadors)
- Moderating forums and discussions
Why DevRel: Community requires authentic relationships, not transactional interactions.
2. Developer education
Activities:
- Writing technical tutorials and guides
- Creating video content and workshops
- Speaking at conferences (teaching, not selling)
- Building sample apps and demos
Why DevRel: Education must be valuable independent of product pitch.
3. Developer feedback loop
Activities:
- Collecting and synthesizing developer feedback
- Representing community voice to product team
- Beta testing and early access programs
- Feature request advocacy
Why DevRel: Trusted relationship with community enables honest feedback.
4. Technical content creation
Activities:
- Deep-dive blog posts on technical topics
- Documentation improvement
- Code samples and quickstarts
- Open source contributions
Why DevRel: Technical credibility matters more than marketing polish.
Example - Vercel DevRel:
Lee Robinson (VP DevRel) creates technical content, speaks at conferences, engages with Next.js community. Focus: helping developers build better, not generating leads.
What Developer Marketing Owns
1. Developer demand generation
Activities:
- Developer-focused ad campaigns
- Sponsored content and partnerships
- Webinar programs with signup goals
- Lead nurturing campaigns
Why Marketing: Has expertise in paid acquisition and funnel optimization.
2. Product positioning and messaging
Activities:
- Developer persona research
- Value proposition development
- Competitive positioning
- Messaging framework
Why Marketing: Strategic positioning expertise.
3. Developer content distribution
Activities:
- Content promotion and amplification
- SEO strategy and optimization
- Social media campaigns
- Newsletter programs
Why Marketing: Distribution and growth expertise.
4. Developer campaign measurement
Activities:
- Attribution modeling
- ROI analysis
- A/B testing and optimization
- Funnel analytics
Why Marketing: Data-driven optimization skills.
Example - Stripe Developer Marketing:
Runs paid campaigns targeting "payment API" searches, optimizes developer landing pages for conversion, measures pipeline contribution. Focus: driving qualified developer signups at scale.
The Overlap Zone (Where They Collaborate)
Some activities genuinely need both:
Technical webinars:
DevRel contributes: Technical content, demo, community promotion Marketing contributes: Registration landing page, email promotion, follow-up nurture
Both needed for success.
Conference presence:
DevRel contributes: Speaking, booth demos, community engagement Marketing contributes: Booth design, event ROI tracking, lead capture
Documentation:
DevRel contributes: Technical accuracy, code samples, best practices Marketing contributes: SEO optimization, discoverability, analytics
Product launches:
DevRel contributes: Technical launch content, community activation, feedback Marketing contributes: Launch messaging, campaign execution, metrics
Organizational Structures
Model 1: Separate teams, shared reporting
Structure:
- DevRel reports to CTO or Product
- Developer Marketing reports to CMO
- Regular collaboration, separate goals
Pros:
- Clear separation of concerns
- DevRel maintains technical credibility
- Marketing has full funnel ownership
Cons:
- Risk of duplication
- Potential territorial conflicts
- Coordination overhead
When it works: Larger companies (>100 people), established DevRel function, clear roles.
Model 2: Developer Marketing under DevRel
Structure:
- DevRel leads overall developer strategy
- Developer Marketing specialist focuses on campaigns/demand gen
- Both report to DevRel leader
Pros:
- Unified developer strategy
- Marketing specialist maintains developer empathy
- Less friction
Cons:
- DevRel leader may lack marketing expertise
- Risk of under-investing in demand gen
- Marketing team may feel disconnected
When it works: Developer-first products, strong DevRel leader with marketing skills, smaller teams.
Model 3: DevRel under Marketing
Structure:
- Marketing owns developer growth
- DevRel team focuses on community and content
- All report to CMO
Pros:
- Clear accountability for developer pipeline
- Marketing resources support DevRel
- Unified go-to-market
Cons:
- Risk of over-commercializing DevRel
- DevRel may lose technical credibility
- Community trust issues
When it works: Marketing-led organizations, DevRel focused on enablement not product advocacy, clear cultural commitment to developer respect.
Model 4: Hybrid (recommended for many)
Structure:
- Director of Developer Marketing & Relations owns both
- DevRel advocates report to this role
- Developer Marketing specialists report to this role
- Role reports to CMO or CPO
Pros:
- Single strategy, clear accountability
- Easy collaboration
- Balanced community + growth focus
Cons:
- Hard to find leader with both skill sets
- Role requires managing different personalities
When it works: Mid-size companies (50-200 people), developer-focused products, when you can find hybrid leader.
The RACI Matrix
For key activities, clarify who does what:
Technical Blog Posts
- Responsible: DevRel (writes)
- Accountable: DevRel (ensures quality)
- Consulted: Developer Marketing (SEO, distribution)
- Informed: Product (for accuracy)
Developer Webinars
- Responsible: Both (DevRel content, Marketing logistics)
- Accountable: Developer Marketing (overall program)
- Consulted: Sales (follow-up)
- Informed: Leadership
Community Management
- Responsible: DevRel (daily management)
- Accountable: DevRel (community health)
- Consulted: Marketing (feedback for campaigns)
- Informed: Support (escalations)
Paid Developer Ads
- Responsible: Developer Marketing (execution)
- Accountable: Marketing (budget and ROI)
- Consulted: DevRel (messaging review)
- Informed: Leadership
Clear RACI prevents "I thought you were doing that"
Success Metrics by Function
Developer Relations metrics:
Community health:
- Active community members
- Questions answered (by community and team)
- Community satisfaction (NPS)
Developer success:
- Time to first API call
- Integration completion rate
- Developer satisfaction (separate from customer NPS)
Content engagement:
- Tutorial completion rates
- Video view duration
- Documentation usefulness ratings
Advocacy:
- Speaking engagements and attendance
- Open source contributions and stars
- Community-created content
Developer Marketing metrics:
Demand generation:
- Developer signups from campaigns
- Marketing-sourced pipeline
- Cost per developer signup
Content performance:
- Organic traffic to developer content
- SEO rankings for target keywords
- Content conversion rates
Campaign ROI:
- Pipeline influenced by dev marketing
- ROI by channel (paid, content, events)
- Developer LTV by acquisition channel
Notice: Different metrics. Some overlap, but distinct goals.
When Tensions Arise
Common conflict: Campaign vs. Community
Scenario:
Marketing: "We're launching paid ad campaign driving to new landing page. Can DevRel tweet about it?"
DevRel: "That landing page is too sales-y. Our community will hate it."
Resolution:
Create two paths:
- Marketing campaign → sales-optimized landing page
- DevRel content → developer-friendly docs and tutorials
Both can coexist. Different audiences, different tones.
Common conflict: Content ownership
Scenario:
Marketing: "We need blog post about [feature] to support launch."
DevRel: "We're working on deep technical tutorial that will take 3 weeks."
Marketing: "We need it in 1 week and it should mention the launch."
Resolution:
Marketing writes launch announcement. DevRel writes technical tutorial. Cross-link. Both serve different purposes.
Common conflict: Event staffing
Scenario:
Marketing wants DevRel at booth generating leads.
DevRel wants to give talks and network with community.
Resolution:
Split time. DevRel does technical demos at booth (draws right crowd), also gives talk. Marketing handles lead capture and follow-up.
Building the Collaboration
Weekly sync:
Agenda:
- Upcoming launches and campaigns
- Content calendar alignment
- Event planning
- Metrics review
30 minutes. Short, focused.
Shared calendar:
Both teams know:
- What content is publishing when
- Event schedule
- Product launch dates
- Campaign launches
No surprises.
Shared Slack channel:
Quick coordination: "Heads up, we're launching campaign next week targeting [keyword]. Could drive traffic to docs."
"Great, we just updated those docs. Link here."
Quarterly planning together:
Align on:
- Key developer segments to target
- Major initiatives (conference season, launch, etc.)
- Budget allocation
- Shared goals
Hiring for Each Role
DevRel hire:
Background:
- Former developer (typically 5+ years coding)
- Some experience speaking/teaching
- Community involvement (open source, meetups)
Skills:
- Technical depth
- Teaching ability
- Empathy for developers
- Comfort with ambiguity
Red flags:
- No development background (can't be technical advocate without being technical)
- Sales-y personality
- Not active in dev communities
Developer Marketing hire:
Background:
- Marketing experience (B2B or developer products)
- Understanding of developer audience
- Data-driven mindset
Skills:
- Campaign management
- Analytics and measurement
- Content strategy
- Technical enough to understand product
Red flags:
- Generic B2B marketing approach
- No understanding of developer culture
- Can't code/read code at all
Starting From Scratch
If you have neither function:
Hire order for typical startup:
First hire (0-50 developers): Part-time DevRel or contractor. Focus: documentation, community, developer support.
Second hire (50-200 developers): Developer Marketing focused on content and SEO. Scale what DevRel started.
Third hire (200-500 developers): DevRel expands to 2-3 people. Add community management, speaking.
Fourth hire (500+ developers): Developer Marketing expands. Add demand gen campaigns, events.
Team at scale (1000+ developers):
- 3-5 DevRel (community, content, advocacy)
- 2-3 Developer Marketing (demand gen, content distribution, analytics)
- Shared leadership
When You Need Both vs. One
You need dedicated DevRel when:
- Active developer community exists or is strategic
- Product requires technical education
- Developer experience is key differentiator
- Competitors have strong DevRel presence
You need dedicated Developer Marketing when:
- Need to scale beyond organic growth
- Competing for developer attention in crowded market
- Sales/pipeline targets require proactive demand gen
- Content and SEO are growth drivers
You can probably get by with one hybrid role when:
- Very early stage (<50 developers using product)
- Simple product with minimal learning curve
- Limited budget (seed stage)
- Strong founder/technical team providing DevRel informally
Companies That Get It Right
Stripe: Clear separation. DevRel builds community and content. Marketing runs campaigns and optimization. Both collaborate on launches.
Vercel: DevRel-first culture with strong marketing support. Lee Robinson (DevRel) is face of Next.js, but marketing scales distribution.
Twilio: Large DevRel team (10+) focused on education and community. Separate developer marketing team runs campaigns. Both aligned on metrics.
Auth0 (Okta): Combined Developer Relations and Marketing under one leader. Clear roles within team. Strong collaboration.
Getting It Right
The key principles:
1. Respect the difference: DevRel and Developer Marketing aren't the same. Don't expect one person to do both jobs.
2. Clarify ownership: Use RACI. No ambiguity about who owns what.
3. Align on goals: Both ultimately serve developer growth. Different metrics, shared mission.
4. Communicate constantly: Weekly syncs, shared channels, transparency.
5. Celebrate together: Win as a team. DevRel content drives signups → both win. Marketing campaign improves community → both win.
When DevRel and Developer Marketing work well together, you get authentic community building AND scalable growth. When they conflict, you get duplicated work, confused developers, and missed goals.
Build both functions. Clarify roles. Collaborate relentlessly.